DRUG MULE CAN GO HOME TO DIE: COURT

Appeal Judges Show Mercy Because of Terminal Illness

Joseph Andrews can go home to die.

Manitoba's highest court showed mercy on the convicted drug mule yesterday,
freeing him from prison on the grounds he is suffering a terminal illness.

The Court of Appeal instead gave Andrews a conditional sentence, which will
allow him to return to British Columbia while fighting the final stages of
colon cancer.

Yesterday's decision is the final chapter in a case which has generated
heated public debate.

Andrews, 63, was convicted last year of possession of cocaine for the
purpose of trafficking and sentenced to four years in prison, in addition
to time already served.

Within days of going to Stony Mountain, Andrews was diagnosed with cancer.
The resident of Langley, B.C. has spent the past months bouncing between
Stony and the Concordia Hospital, where a guard is posted outside his door
around the clock.

Andrews filed an appeal earlier this year on compassionate grounds.

Defence lawyer Ian Garber told the court in February the sentence against
Andrews was harsh and excessive given the recent medical diagnosis which
has only given him a five per cent chance of living more than three more years.

Andrews was too weak to appear in court, having just undergone chemotherapy.

The Crown argued the sentence was justified and the judge made no error in
law. They claimed Andrews' health was a matter for parole officials.

"I don't want to sound too callous, but he knew he had terrible health
before he got involved in this. He went into this offence with his eyes
wide open. This isn't a neophyte," said Crown attorney Ian Mahon. Andrews
has an extensive criminal record spanning four decades, including previous
drug convictions.

He is also wanted in Massachusetts for violating terms of a previous sentence.

In their decision released yesterday, the appeal court said Andrew's
current medical situation is far more dire than the one presented to the
sentencing judge, which included diabetes, kidney disease and cataracts.

"We should not disregard the accused's most recent illness, and his poor
prognosis. These factors can open the door for reconsideration, if on
humanitarian grounds alone," the appeal court wrote.

"We must conclude that what was fit one year ago might now seem quite harsh."

The high court agreed the trial judge made the right decision at the time
in sending Andrews to prison, as his crime warranted a stiff sentence that
stressed denunciation and deterrence.

"The sentence imposed...was not unfit at the time of imposition. But close
to a year has elapsed since then, and the circumstances of the accused are
different now," the court wrote.

"The accused is in the process of dying. He has been incarcerated on this
charge since the start of February 2002, somewhat over two years. If his
sentence is maintained, he may well die in the medical ward of a federal
penitentiary."

Andrews must re-appear before the court to work out terms of the
conditional sentence. He had previously been denied bail on compassionate
grounds pending his appeal court hearing. Andrews was arrested in February
2002 after Winnipeg police stopped his rental vehicle on Portage Avenue
just west of the Perimeter Highway.

Drug officers found two kilograms of cocaine hidden in a cooler behind the
seat, which they believe was destined for the local chapter of the Hells
Angels.

Police were tipped off about Andrews days earlier by an informant.

Andrews also challenged his conviction, claiming police conducted an
illegal search when they found the cocaine.

The appeal court said yesterday police had proper grounds to search and
dismissed the conviction appeal.

Andrews blames shoddy medical care at the Winnipeg Remand Centre for
failing to detect the illness which has left him on the brink of death.

Andrews and his family are now considering a lawsuit against the province,
claiming the Remand Centre will be negligent for his expected demise.